Going through the break-up of your marriage can be a difficult and upsetting process, but once your divorce is finalized, you may feel at a loss for what to do next. Whether you had a long or short marriage, you are likely to be used to making decisions together.
But now that you’ve worked with a family lawyer, gone through the court process, and are officially divorced, you will be making decisions by yourself, for yourself. So, here is the ultimate guide on how to become an independent woman after a divorce.
Reevaluate your long-term goals
During your marriage you may have considered your spouse in all your future plans, but now that they are no longer in your life, you should re-evaluate what you want. You should consider first what you want to achieve in the next 12 months and then make a five-year plan. You may have had your own dreams that you put on the back burner because of your dedication to your partner, but now the sky is the limit. You are now an independent woman who can do what she wants when she wants!
Have a clear-out
Throughout a marriage, you can acquire a lot of joint items, some of which you may have shared during the divorce. But many of the items you are left with may remind you of your ex and you may want to replace them. Moving on from the past and concentrating on the future is one of the first steps on the path to becoming an independent woman. You may have acquired gifts and jewelry from your partner during your marriage that is painful to look at, so you might be thinking about finding a place to sell your ring. Selling a ring may provide you with some closure, as well as help you make feel more independent.
Learn to enjoy time alone
When you are married, you spend most of your time with your significant other. But this all changes once you are divorced and you may find that you spend a lot of time on your own. However, to become an independent woman, post-divorce, you need to learn to enjoy the time you spend by yourself. Coming home at the end of a long day to your own place where you can eat or watch whatever you like, without having to consider someone else, can be a great feeling. Embrace your new-found freedom and use it to develop your independence.
Make your own choices
You may have previously found yourself not making many decisions for yourself during your marriage. Small decisions such as what to have for dinner, to much bigger decisions such as where to live, may have all been made for you. So, spend some time thinking about what you really want.
Look at your finances
Usually, within a marriage, a couple’s finances are tied together through mortgages and investments, so it can get complicated when you are getting a divorce. But to become an independent woman, it is important that you have a look at your personal finances and consider any financial problems you may face now that you are divorced. Looking at what money you have can sometimes be a daunting thing to do, but if you are going to be independent then you will need to be financially independent as well.
Going through a divorce can be a very difficult period of your life, but it is also a chance for a fresh start and it offers the opportunity for you to revamp yourself into the strong independent woman who you have always dreamed of being!